Aircraft remote monitoring system

ABSTRACT

An assembly is disclosed that facilitates monitoring one or more aircraft that are on the ground at an airport or other facility. The assembly includes a web based camera that can pan, tilt and zoom, as well as a base that can pan independent of the movement of the camera. The assembly can be selectively affixed to any aircraft service vehicle, such as a fuel truck, to monitor one or more the craft during processes such as fueling, baggage or passenger unloading, and the like. The camera can be operated remotely and/or from the service vehicle to provide relatively constant surveillance of the aircraft. The camera is housed within a protective environmental chamber so that the assembly can be utilized outdoors substantially indefinitely.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention's focus is on monitoring aircraft while on theground, in particular, during processes such as fueling.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Substantial resources go into owning and operating an aircraft. There isthe large capital cost associated with purchasing an aircraft, as wellas substantial expenses associated with fueling, staffing, and servicingthe aircraft. Given so large an investment, it would be highly desirableto be able to monitor what's going on around the aircraft when it is ina static state. Monitoring would include visual security and assurancethat those who fuel and/or otherwise service the aircraft do so withouteffecting damage. Specifically, it would be very desirable to monitorthe fueling process that all aircraft require, so as to be able todiscern whether fuel loss takes place or damage is caused to theaircraft (otherwise referred to as one type of “hanger rash”) duringthis type of operation. Similarly, given the cost and stringentrequirements of both airline and general aviation fueling operations, itwould be desirable to be able to monitor fueling attributes, such asfuel flow rates, what individual(s) are performing or otherwise involvedwith the fueling operation, etc. Further, given the nefarious intentionsof some individuals (e.g., terrorists), it is very important to be ableto keep a constant eye on the aircraft, in particular the embarkation ordeplaning process, the loading and/or unloading of baggage, and“on-the-ramp” maintenance procedures, all by way of example. Finally,given the fact that aircraft operate at night and during inclementweather, it is desirable to have such monitoring capabilities proximateto the aircraft.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following presents a summary of the invention and its purpose. Thissummary is not as an extensive overview of the invention, rather, it isintended to simply identify its key or critical elements. A moredetailed description is presented later.

The present invention relates to the monitoring of an aircraft when theaircraft is in a grounded or static state. The aircraft may be monitoredat all times, including: the fueling process, during maintenanceoperations, when passengers of air freight are being loaded and/orunloaded, as well as when the aircraft is merely residing on a runway orwithin a hanger, etc. According to one or more aspects of the presentinvention, an assembly is provided that can be selectively attached toan aircraft service vehicle (called in the industry “ground serviceequipment (GSE),) such as a fuel truck. Said assembly includes a camerathat is housed within a protective environmental chamber. As such, theassembly can be utilized outdoors in all types of weather.

The following description, with annexed drawings set forth and detailcertain illustrative aspects and implementations of the invention. Theseare indicative of but a few of the various ways in which one or moreaspects of the present invention may be employed. Other aspects,advantages and novel features of the invention will become apparent fromthe following detailed description of the invention when considered inconjunction with the annexed drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an implementation of thepresent invention at an airport, fixed base or other aircraft relatedfacility.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of an aircraft monitoring assemblyaccording to one or more aspects of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is another schematic illustration of an aircraft monitoringassembly according to one or more aspects of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration depicting a side view of a truck cabwherein one or more aspects of the present invention may be implemented.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram illustrating of an arrangement ofcomponents that provide for the implementation of one or more aspects ofthe present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary distributed computing arrangement overwhich one or more aspects of the present invention may be practiced.

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a suitable hardware andsoftware environment wherein one or more aspects of the presentinvention may be implemented.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention pertains to monitoring an aircraft, particularlywhere the aircraft is in a grounded or static condition. One or moreaspects of the present invention will now be described with reference todrawing figures, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer tolike elements throughout. It should be understood that the drawingfigures and following descriptions are merely illustrative and that theyshould not be taken in a limiting sense. In the following description,for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. Itwill be evident to one skilled in the art, however, that the presentinvention may be practiced without these specific details. Thus, it willbe appreciated that variations of the illustrated systems and methodsapart from those illustrated and described herein may exist and thatsuch variations are deemed as falling within the scope of the presentinvention and the appended claims.

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of an implementation of the presentinvention at an airport or other aircraft related facility. An aircraftservice vehicle 102 (in this example a fuel truck) is outfitted with amonitoring assembly 104 that can be selectively attached to the vehiclein accordance with one or more aspects of the present invention. Theassembly 104 includes a web based camera that has pan, tilt and zoomcapabilities. The camera also has a base that has pan capabilities thatare independent of the movement capabilities of the camera. The camerathus allows relatively constant monitoring of one or more aircraft 106that are in a grounded condition at an airport or other facility.

The camera can, for example, be configured to automatically pan left andright within a certain range of motion 110 to provide surveillance of aparticular aircraft, for example. Such automated action may occur, forexample, when the service vehicle is not active (e.g., the vehicle'sengine is turned off). For example, an algorithm can be implemented thatcauses the base to rotate through a 180 degree range of motion (e.g., 90degrees left of center and 90 degrees right of center) when the vehicleis turned off. By way of further example, when the vehicle is started,control can automatically revert back to one or more individuals withinthe vehicle as well as to one or more individuals away from the vehicleso that the camera can be “manually” controlled. There may also be amanual override that allows an individual to have control over thesystem at any time. The base can, for example, be controlled to pan leftand right by someone in the vehicle, such as through the use of ajoystick or other type of controller, for example, whereas pan, tilt andzoom functions of the web based camera can be controlled (e.g.,wirelessly) and/or from anywhere in the world via a controller orcomputing device operatively associated with the Internet, for example.It will be appreciated that the base also has the capability of beingcontrolled remotely. Similarly, the camera can be controlled from withinthe cab. It will be appreciated that the movement capabilities of thebase and web based camera provide two degrees of “surveying” freedom.

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of the assembly 104 according to oneor more aspects of the present invention. The assembly 104 includes aweb based camera 120 that has pan (side to side) 122, tilt (up and down)124 and zoom (in and out) 126 capabilities. In general, the cameraoperates by forming an image through a lens section 128 of the camera120 which is received by some type of sensors within the camera (e.g.,photoelectric conversion elements such as charge couple devices (CCDs)).Charge coupled devices, for example, may be located at a focal plane ofthe camera and facilitate converting light at the focal plane into anelectronic image. Such charge coupled devices may, for example, besurface-mounted to a sensor printed circuit board lying within the focalplane. The charge coupled devices may also, for example, be sensitive toboth visible, ultraviolet, or infrared light for operation in a varietyof lighting conditions. The image signal is converted by ananalog-to-digital converter into a digital signal, and the digitalsignal is supplied to a signal processing section of the camera. Thesignal processing section generates a video signal which may be composedof brightness and/or color-difference signals, for example. The videosignal may be generated by way of signal processing techniques, such ascolor separation, gamma correction, etc., for example. The signalprocessing section may then forward the video signal to a compressionsection which compresses the video signal by a compression process andthereby generates a compressed coded video signal. The coded videosignal is buffered in a buffer and then made ready for transmission toan external device via an interface and a network, such as a local areanetwork, for example.

In the illustrated example, the camera 120 is outfitted with a (protocolcompliant) transceiver 132 that facilitates the transfer of output data(e.g., image data, sensor data—discussed below, etc.) to an associatedcomputer/controller 134, as well as the receipt of input data (e.g.,control signals) from the associated computer/controller 134. Further,the camera 120 is positioned upon a base 136 that can also pan laterallyfrom side to side/left to right 138. Although not illustrated, it willbe appreciated that one or more motors, such as servo-motors, forexample, are generally responsible for movement of the camera and thebase. The base 136 also includes means 140 for selectively mounting theassembly to a service vehicle, such as the roof of a fuel truck, forexample. It will be appreciated that the means 140 for mounting theassembly 104 includes, bolts, nuts, washers, screws, rivets, welds,snaps, clasps, buckles, tabs, hooks, latches, ropes, chords, lashings,glues, tapes, nails, adhesives, as well as any other types of itemsand/or arrangements, either alone or in combination, that can beutilized to selectively position the assembly onto the vehicle in asubstantially stable manner. It will be appreciated that a slip ring(not shown) may be juxtaposed between the base 136 and the camera 120.The slip ring may be electrically conductive thereby serving to providean electrical coupling between the camera 120 and base 136. In thismanner, electrical power can be supplied to the camera 120 andelectrical signals (e.g., control signals, digital images) can be inputto and/or output from the camera 120 via the slip ring. This alleviateswiring needs and thus facilitates unobstructed rotation of the camera120 on the base 136 (e.g., for a 360 degree pan).

FIG. 3 is another schematic illustration of the assembly 104 showingthat the assembly 104, in another example, includes a protective housingor environmental chamber 144 within which the camera 120 is situated. Assuch, the assembly can remain outdoors with the camera functioningindefinitely. The housing 144 is formed out of an environmentallydurable material, such as plastic and/or treated metal, by way ofexample. In the illustration, the enclosure or environmental housing 144is situated upon the base 136 and as such generally moves with the base136. It will be appreciated that while the housing 144 is depicted ashaving a substantially cube-like configuration, it can have any suitableconfiguration in accordance with one or more aspects of the presentinvention, such as an elliptical or dome-like configuration.

According to one or more aspects of the present invention, the housingincludes a plurality of environmental sensors with correspondingenvironmental controls. In the illustrated example, for instance, thehousing 144 includes temperature 146, pressure 148 and humidity 150sensors. These sensors are operative to sense respective environmentalconditions within the chamber 144. Readings from these sensors may betransmitted (e.g., wirelessly) to a controller, such as controller 134or another computer based controller, which then can use them toselectively adjust corresponding controls. For example, a heater 152,cooler/air-conditioner 154 and/or fan 156 can be selectively adjusted toregulate the temperature within the housing 144. Similarly, a humidifier160 and/or de-humidifier 162 can be selectively controlled to adjust themoisture content within the housing 144. Likewise, a valve 164 can beopened and/or closed to varying degrees in order to control the pressurewithin the housing 144. Such controls may also be operated inconjunction with one another to achieve a desired goal. For example, theheater 152, de-humidifier 162 and valve 164 may be operated inconjunction with one another to achieve a desired level of moisturewithin the housing 144. Such combined use of the controls may be basedupon some type of optimization algorithm, for example. Further, one ormore of the sensed environmental conditions can be relayed back to auser and presented on a display device (e.g., along with video data).

Turning to FIG. 4, a side view of a cab 170 of a maintenance vehicle102, in our example a fuel truck that is illustrated schematically. Theassembly 104 is selectively positioned upon the top of the cab 170 inaccordance with one or more aspects of the present invention. In theillustrated example, a joystick type apparatus 172 is included in thecab 170 for selectively controlling movement of one or more parts of theassembly 104. For example the joystick can effect panning capabilities138 of the base 136. Similarly, a display device 174, such as a thinfilm transistor (TFT) or liquid crystal display (LCD) monitor, is alsopresent within the cab 170 allowing one or more individuals in the cabto see what the camera is focused on. This, for example, allows thedriver of the vehicle to see when and/or if fuel is spilling over whenthe aircraft is being fueled or if a security breach takes place. Anextra battery 176 is also illustrated allowing for the provision ofelectrical power to the assembly 104 (wiring omitted). The exampleillustrated shows that multiple extra batteries can be included and thatone or more of the batteries can be housed within the cab 170 and/orunder the hood of the vehicle or otherwise near the engine of thevehicle 102.

According to one or more aspects of the present invention, attributesassociated with a fueling operation and/or transaction can also belogged and included in a data stream and transmitted back to a userand/or presented on any type of display device. Such information maycomprise, for example, an authorization code of the individual whoinitiated the fueling process, a snapshot of who actually connected thefueling equipment, before and after images of the fueling process inorder to give an indication of whether hanger rash occurred (or did notoccur) and the cause (culprit) of any such hanger rash, a breakdown offuel additives, sales information (e.g., credit cardinformation/validation), quantity of fuel administered, flow ratesand/or other records of the fueling transaction. Such data may alsoinclude time and/or date stamps that give a record of when, for example,a sales transaction begins and/or ends, when a fueling process startsand/or stops, when alarms sound and/or fueling is stopped(automatically) due to an insufficient flow of one or more additives. Itwill be appreciated that data regarding fuel flow (as well as any otherfueling attributes) can be acquired and logged in any suitable manneraccording to one or more aspects of the present invention, such as withoptical, quadrature and/or single ended pulsers, for example.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram illustrating of an arrangement 200of a plurality of components or modules that provide for theimplementation of one or more aspects of the present invention. A firstblock 202 indicates that power is supplied from a vehicle battery, inthe illustrated example a 13.6 volt DC battery. This block feeds intoblock 204 for conditioning/conversion of the power to a form morefeasible for use by other components. Block 204 thus feeds out DC/ACpower as required to other components. One block, that block 204 feedsout to, is block 206, which is a wireless access point or client. In theillustrated example, this is implemented as 802.11b/g, which is an 11megabit per second standard. However, it will be appreciated that otherstandards are contemplated and are intended to fall within the scope ofthe present invention. The wireless access point feeds out to block 208that corresponds to a diversity antenna that facilitates datatransmission to or from the client 206.

Block 204 also provides power to block 210 which is a multi-porthub/switch. The multi-port hub/switch 210 is also operatively connectedto the wireless access point 206, as well as to block 212, whichrepresents a refueling control system. As such, data can be sent betweenblocks 210 and 206, as well as between blocks 210 and 212. Block 204 isfurther connected to block 214 which corresponds to a camera (previouslyreferenced as 120) to provide operating power thereto. The multi-porthub/switch 210 is similarly coupled to the camera 214 to provide controlsignals thereto. In the illustrated example, the multi-port hub/switch210 is operatively coupled to the refueling control system 212 and thecamera 214 via 10BaseT TCP/IP. It will be appreciated, however, thatwhile transmission control protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP)connections may be utilized, other links, such as RF links and/or offfrequency applications are contemplated and are intended to fall withinthe scope of the present invention.

The camera 214 is further coupled to blocks 216 and 218 which correspondto a local camera screen and a local camera control respectively. Thelocal camera screen 216 receives data from the camera 214 (e.g., ofimages taken by the camera), while the camera 214 receives data from thecontrol 218 (e.g., pan, tilt, zoom commands). It will be appreciatedthat the camera screen 216 may correspond to the display devicepreviously referenced as 174 in FIG. 4, for example. Similarly, localcamera control 218 may correspond to the joystick device referenced as172 in FIG. 4.

Finally, block 222, which corresponds to an optional network basedmobile controller, is operatively associated with the hub 210 forsending and receiving data therefrom. Block 222 may be part of anEthernet network, for example, that can be included on the aircraftservice vehicle that facilitates a gateway (e.g., Ethernet to Bluetoothgateway) to the assembly that allows a remote device (e.g., a PDA havinga Visual Basic and/or Visual C application running thereon) to controlthe camera and/or base and/or to view data from the camera, fuelingsystem, etc. Also, the controller 222 facilitates resolving conflictingcommands. In one example, conflicting instructions are arbitrated on afirst come first serve basis. Accordingly, a local command would becarried out in a situation where it is received just before a contraryremote command. For example, an instruction coming from the cab of thevehicle to point the camera northeast would be carried out in lieu of acommand coming from a remote device located away from the vehicle topoint the camera southwest, where the remote command is receive justafter the local command. It will be appreciated that multiple localcommands, multiple remote commands and/or a mixture of conflicting localand remote commands may be resolved in a similar manner.

It should be understood that the implementations described herein can,at least in part, be realized on a wide variety of hardware and softwareplatforms (e.g. specialized apparatus, dedicated computer systems withhardwired logic or programs stored in memory, discrete logic devices,large scale integrated circuits (LSIs), application-specific integratedcircuits (ASICs), combinations of computer components with othernon-computer components). It is also to be understood that the examplesprovided herein may be implemented in various environments (e.g.networked architectures utilizing clients and servers, public andprivate computer networks, computer networks of commercial on-lineservices, internal corporate local area networks (LANs), intranets).

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary distributed computing arrangement overwhich one or more aspects of the present invention may be practiced. Thearrangement includes multiple computing devices that can be utilized toaccess pictures from the camera and/or to control operation(s) of thecamera, for example. More particularly, a plurality of computing devices(e.g. personal computers (PCs) 310 a, minicomputers 310 b, personaldigital assistants (PDAs) 310 c, workstations 310 d, laptops 310 e, etc)are directly or indirectly interconnected via a network to a computer orserver 314 operatively associated with the monitoring assembly 104(e.g., through wireless RF techniques). It will be appreciated that thecomputers may be linked over different topologies or zones as thenetwork may comprise numerous configurations (e.g. Internet 316 a,intranets 316 b, wide area networks (WANs), LANs, SNA networks,extranets) supported by any of a variety of connection types or mediums(e.g. telephone line and modem, integrated services digital network(ISDN), T1, T2, T3, T4, DS1 or other high speed telecommunicationsconnections and appropriate connection device, television cable andmodem, satellite link, optical fiber link, Ethernet or other local areanetwork technology wire and adapter card, wireless link, radio oroptical transmission devices).

A CPU 320 is shown operatively coupled to read only memory (ROM) 322 andmain memory 324 in client computer 310 a. ROM 322 is operative to storestatic information and instructions utilized during CPU processing,while main memory 324 stores information and instructions executable bythe CPU 320 as well as temporary variables or other intermediateprocessing information. Main memory 324 may include, for example, randomaccess memory (RAM) and/or other volatile storage medium. Also coupledto the CPU 320 are one or more input devices 326 (e.g. alphanumerickeyboard, pointer device, mouse, joystick, trackball, stylus, motionpad, cursor direction keys, voice activated control device, wirelessinput device, and/or other equipment or peripherals that facilitate userinteraction with the computers). Similarly, one or more output devices328 (e.g. cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD),speakers, headphones) for presenting audio and/or video information to auser are also operatively coupled to the CPU 320. Software 330 (e.g.HTML browser software, application programs, application programinterfaces (APIs), operating systems) stored in main memory 324 of thedevice 310 a is executable via the CPU 320 to provide much of thefunctionality associated with the client computer 310 a. It will beappreciated that generally all of the distributed computing devices andcomputer 314 may possess similar arrangements.

A user working at the client computer 310 a can utilize an input device326, in association with a graphical user interface (GUI), for example,to submit a request for images from the camera and/or to submit movementcommands to the camera. A user can, for example, enter a uniformresource locator (URL) or web address corresponding to computer 314 intobrowser software running on the client computer with a keyboard orengage a link with a mouse. The computer 314 receives the signal(s) fromthe client computer 310 a and transmits the same to the assembly 304 inorder to control the camera and/or extract images there-from. In thismanner, an individual can “keep an eye on” a grounded or static aircraftirrespective of the relative location of the individual to saidaircraft. The individual can watch streaming video, for example, of theaircraft, as a fuel truck approaches the aircraft and fuels theaircraft. Further, the user can zoom in and/or otherwise adjust thecamera to see areas of interest, such as the name tag(s) of theindividual(s) performing the (re)fueling operation or any other securityrelated visually determinable function.

It is to be appreciated that any types, combinations and/or suites ofprotocols, working alone or in combination, in order to support networkcommunications, are suitable for use in accordance with one or moreaspects of the present invention (e.g. HTTP, HTTP 1.1, transmissioncontrol protocol/Internet protocol (TCP/IP), remote procedure call(RPC), remote method invocation (RMI), Java database connectivity(JDBC), open database connectivity (ODBC), secure sockets layer (SSL),network file system (NFS), FTP, telnet, simple mail transfer protocol(SMTP), point-of-presence 3 (POP3), serial line Internet protocol(SLIP), point-to-point protocol (PPP), user datagram protocol (UDP),Internet control message protocol (ICMP), interior gateway protocol(IGP), exterior gateway protocol (EGP), border gateway protocol (BGP),handheld device transfer protocol (HDTP), wireless application protocol(WAP), cellular digital packet data (CDPD), code division multipleaccess (CDMA), global system for mobile communications (GSM), timedivision multiple access (TDMA), personal digital communications (PDC),personal handy-phone system (PHS), personal handy-phone system-wirelesslocal loop (PHS-WLL), FLEX, integrated digital enhanced network, (IDEN),digital enhanced cordless telecommunications (DECT)).

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a suitable computingenvironment wherein one or more aspects of the present invention may beimplemented. It is to be appreciated that the environment is but onepossible computing environment and is not intended to limit the presentinvention. Further, inventive aspects described herein may be practicedwith any of a variety of computer system configurations (e.g.single-processor or multiprocessor computer systems, minicomputers, PCs,workstations, laptops, PDAs, palmtops, mainframe computers, personalcomputers, hand-held computing devices, microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer electronics, each of which may be operativelycoupled to one or more associated devices of similar or differenttypes). Illustrated aspects of the invention may also be practiced indistributed computing environments where certain tasks are performed byremote processing devices that are linked through a communicationsnetwork. In such an environment, program modules may be located in amemory storage device of both local and remote devices.

The environment includes a computer 420, including a processing unit orCPU 422, a system memory 424, and a system bus 426 that couples varioussystem components including the system memory to the processing unit422. The processing unit 422 may be any of various commerciallyavailable processors. It is to be appreciated that dual microprocessorsand other multi-processor architectures also may be employed as theprocessing unit 422. The system bus may be any of several types of busstructure including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus,and a local bus using any of a variety of commercially available busarchitectures (e.g. PCI, VESA, Microchannel, ISA, EISA). The systemmemory may include read only memory (ROM) 428 and random access memory(RAM) 430. A basic input/output system (BIOS), containing the basicroutines that help to transfer information between elements within thecomputer 420, such as during start-up, is stored in ROM 428.

The computer 420 also may include, for example, a hard disk drive 432, amagnetic disk drive 434, e.g. to read from or write to a removable disk436, and an optical disk drive 438, e.g. for reading from or writing toa CD-ROM disk 440 or other optical media. The hard disk drive 432,magnetic disk drive 434, and optical disk drive 438 are connected to thesystem bus 426 by a hard disk drive interface 442, a magnetic disk driveinterface 444, and an optical drive interface 446, respectively.Computer-readable media associated with the drives can be any availablemedia that can be accessed by the computer 420. By way of example, andnot limitation, computer readable media may comprise computer storagemedia and communication media. Computer storage media includes volatileand nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media (e.g. hard disk,removable magnetic disk, compact disk (CD), magnetic cassettes, flashmemory cards, Bernoulli cartridges, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory,CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD), other medium which can be used tostore desired information) implemented in any method or technology forstorage of information such as computer readable instructions, datastructures, program modules or other data which can be accessed by thecomputer 420, including components and/or computer-executableinstructions that are to be installed in accordance with one or moreaspects of the present invention. Communication media typically embodiescomputer readable instructions, data structures, program modules orother data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave or othertransport mechanism and includes any information delivery media. Theterm modulated data signal means a signal that has one or more of itscharacteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode informationin the signal. By way of example, and not limitation, communicationmedia includes wired media such as a wired network or direct-wiredconnection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and otherwireless media.

A number of program modules may be stored in the drives and RAM 430,including an operating system 448, one or more application programs 450,other program modules 452, and program data 454. The operating system448 may be any suitable operating system or a combination of operatingsystems. A user may enter commands and information into the computer 420through one or more user input devices (e.g. keyboard 456,mouse/pointing device 458, microphone, joystick, game pad, satellitedish, scanner (all not shown)). These are often connected to theprocessing unit 422 through a serial port interface 460 that is coupledto the system bus 426, but may be connected by other interfaces (e.g.parallel port, game port, universal serial bus (USB), IR interface). Adisplay device (e.g. monitor 462) is also connected to the system bus426 via an interface (e.g. video adapter 464). In addition to themonitor 462, the computer 420 may include other peripheral outputdevices (e.g. speakers, printers (not shown)).

The computer 420 may operate in a networked environment using one ormore logical and/or physical connections to one or more remote computers466. The remote computer 466 may be a workstation, a server computer, arouter, a peer device or other common network node, and typicallyincludes many or all of the elements described relative to the computer420, although, for purposes of brevity, only a memory storage device 468is illustrated. The logical connections depicted in FIG. 4 may includeany of a variety of networks (e.g. local area network (LAN) 470, widearea network (WAN) 472). Such networking environments are commonplace inoffices, enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets and the Internet.

When employed in a LAN networking environment, the computer 420 isconnected to the local network 470 through a network interface oradapter 474. When used in a WAN networking environment, the computer 420typically includes a modem 476, or is connected to a communicationsserver on the LAN, or has other means for establishing communicationsover the WAN 472, such as the Internet. The modem 476, which may beinternal or external, is connected to the system bus 426 via the serialport interface 460. In a networked environment, program modules depictedrelative to the computer 420, or portions thereof, may be stored in theremote memory storage device 468. It will be appreciated that thenetwork connections shown are exemplary and other means of establishinga communications link between the computers 420 and 466 may be used.

A component, as used herein, may refer to a computer-related entity(e.g. hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software,software in execution, a process running on a processor, a processor, anobject, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, a computer, anapplication running on a server, a server). Additionally, a system maycomprise a structure having one or more modules, where a module mayinclude computer hardware and/or software (e.g. computer readable memoryencoded with software instructions, computer configuration to carry outspecified tasks, application program stored in computer readable memory,server on which an application runs, software object). Also, variousaspects of the present invention may employ technologies associated withfacilitating unconstrained optimization (e.g. back-propagation,Bayesian, Fuzzy Set, Non Linear regression, or other neural networkparadigms including mixture of experts, cerebellar model arithmeticcomputer (CMACS), Radial Basis Functions, directed search networks, andfunctional link nets).

Although the invention has been illustrated and described with respectto one or more implementations, equivalent alterations and modificationswill occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading andunderstanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. Inparticular regard to the various functions performed by the abovedescribed components (assemblies, devices, circuits, systems, etc.), theterms (including a reference to a “means”) used to describe suchcomponents are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, toany component which performs the specified function of the describedcomponent (e.g., that is functionally equivalent), even though notstructurally equivalent to the disclosed structure which performs thefunction in the herein illustrated exemplary implementations of theinvention. In addition, while a particular feature of the invention mayhave been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations,such feature may be combined with one or more other features of theother implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any givenor particular application. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms“including”, “includes”, “having”, “has”, “with”, or variants thereofare used in either the detailed description and the claims, such termsare intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term“comprising.” Also, the term “exemplary” as used herein is merely meantto mean an example, rather than the best.

1. An assembly configured for selective mounting to an aircraft servicevehicle, comprising: a camera having one or more of tilt, pan and zoomcapabilities; a base to which the camera is operatively associated, thebase having pan capabilities; means for selectively mounting theassembly to the aircraft service vehicle; and an environmental chamberoperatively associated with the base and enveloping the camera.
 2. Theassembly of claim 1, wherein the chamber includes one or more sensors tosense environmental conditions within the chamber.
 3. The assembly ofclaim 2, wherein the chamber includes one or more environmental controlsoperative to adapt environmental conditions within the chamber inresponse to one or more readings taken by one or more of the sensors. 4.The assembly of claim 3, wherein the one or more sensors comprise atleast one of a temperature sensor, pressure sensor and humidity sensor.5. The assembly of claim 4, wherein the one or more environmentalcontrols comprise at least one of a heater, fan, humidifier,de-humidifier, cooling unit, air conditioner and valve.
 6. The assemblyof claim 3, further comprising: a transceiver that facilitatestransmitting output data and receiving input data.
 7. The assembly ofclaim 6, wherein the at least one of the camera, base and environmentalcontrols is configured to be controlled remotely.
 8. The assembly ofclaim 7, wherein output data is selectively presented on a display. 9.The assembly of claim 8, wherein the assembly is mounted upon a cab ofthe service vehicle and the display is located within the cab.
 10. Theassembly of claim 9, wherein the display comprises a TFT or LCD monitor.11. The assembly of claim 9, wherein a controller is located within thecab for controlling at least one of the camera and the base.
 12. Theassembly of claim 11, wherein the controller within the cab comprises ajoystick.
 13. The assembly of claim 8, wherein output data comprises atleast one of video data, environmental sensor data and fueling attributedata.
 14. The assembly of claim 13, wherein fueling attributes compriseat least one of an authorization code of a person who initiated afueling process, a snapshot of an individual who connected fuelingequipment, an image of an aircraft before a fueling process isinitiated, an image of an aircraft after a fueling process has beencompleted, a breakdown of fuel additives, sales information, credit cardinformation, credit card validation data, a quantity of fueladministered, one or more flow rates occurring during a fueling process,time stamp data and date stamp data.
 15. The assembly of claim 14,wherein data regarding fuel flow is acquired with at least one ofoptical pulsers, quadrature pulsers and single ended pulsers.
 16. Theassembly of claim 7, wherein an 802.11 b/g standard is utilized forwireless communications for the assembly.
 17. The assembly of claim 7,wherein a 10BaseT TCP/IP connection is utilized for communications forthe assembly.
 18. The assembly of claim 3, wherein power is provided tothe assembly via a vehicle associated therewith.
 19. The assembly ofclaim 18, wherein an extra battery is included within the vehicle forproviding power to the assembly.
 20. The assembly of claim 3, whereinthe camera is operatively associated to the base via a slip ring. 21.The assembly of claim 3, wherein the chamber comprises at least one ofplastic and metal.
 22. The assembly of claim 3, wherein the means formounting comprises at least one of bolts, nuts, washers, screws, rivets,welds, snaps, clasps, buckles, tabs, hooks, latches, ropes, chords,lashings, glues, tapes, nails and adhesives.
 23. The assembly of claim3, wherein the camera is a web based camera.
 24. The assembly of claim3, further comprising: a controller that arbitrates between local andremote commands, where local commands serve to control the camera and/orbase from the aircraft service vehicle and remote commands serve tocontrol the camera and/or base from locations remote from the aircraftservice vehicle.
 25. The assembly of claim 24, wherein the controllerallows for remote or local control of the camera or base, respectively,while concurrently allowing for remote or local control of the base orcamera, respectively.
 26. The assembly of claim 25, further comprising:a local access point operatively associated with the controller thatfacilitates transmission of the remote commands and receipt and displayof video data from the camera via the controller; and a remote accesspoint operatively associated with the controller that facilitatestransmission of the remote commands and receipt and display of videodata from the camera via the controller.
 27. The assembly of claim 26,wherein the local access point comprises: a control enabling devicewithin the aircraft service vehicle; and a display within the aircraftservice vehicle.
 28. The assembly of claim 27, wherein the controlenabling device comprises a joystick.
 29. The assembly of claim 26,further comprising: a power conditioning component that facilitatesconverting power from one or more batteries to respective formats usableby at least one of the camera, base, controller, local access point andremote access point.
 30. The assembly of claim 26, wherein the remoteaccess point is wirelessly associated with the controller.
 31. Theassembly of claim 26, further comprising: a fueling control systemoperatively associated with the controller, wherein the fueling controlsystem regulates fueling of an aircraft by the aircraft service vehicleand acquires fueling attribute data and provides the fueling attributedata to a display device via the controller.
 32. The assembly of claim26, wherein the controller is operatively associated with a multi-porthub.
 33. The assembly of claim 26, wherein the controller causes thecamera to enter an automated state when the vehicle is not activewherein the camera pans back and forth within a predetermined range. 34.The assembly of claim 33, wherein the controller allows a user toover-ride the automated state of the camera.
 35. A system adapted tomonitor one or more aircraft from an aircraft service vehicle with whichthe system is operatively associated, the system comprising: amulti-port hub operatively associated with at least one of a camera anda base, where the camera is operatively associated with the base and thecamera is configured to at least one of pan, tilt and zoom, and the baseis configured to pan; a wireless access point operatively associatedwith the multi-port hub, the wireless access point serving as a point ofpresence for a wireless network within which the system is operated andallowing one or more remote devices to send data to and receive datafrom at least one of the camera and base.
 36. The system of claim 35,further comprising: a local camera control operatively associated withat least one of the camera and base and facilitating control over atleast one of the camera and base, the local camera control being locatedin the aircraft service vehicle.
 37. The system of claim 36, furthercomprising: a local display operatively associated with the camera fordisplaying camera data to a user within the vehicle.
 38. The system ofclaim 36, further comprising: a fueling control system operativelyassociated with the multi-port hub, wherein the fueling control systemregulates fueling of an aircraft by the aircraft service vehicle andacquires fueling attribute data, wherein one or more remote devices canat least one of receive the attribute data and control the fuelingcontrol system via the wireless access point.
 39. The system of claim35, further comprising: a diversity antenna operatively associated withthe wireless access point.
 40. The system of claim 35, furthercomprising: a power conditioning component that facilitates convertingpower from one or more batteries to respective formats usable by atleast one of the camera, base, wireless access point and multi-port hub.41. The system of claim 35, further comprising: an environmental housingoperatively associated with the base and substantially isolating thecamera from an external environment.
 42. The system of claim 41, furthercomprising: one or more sensors operable to sense environmentalconditions within the housing; and one or more environmental controlsoperative to adapt one or more environmental conditions within thechamber in response to one or more readings taken by one or more of thesensors.
 43. The system of claim 35, further comprising: means forselectively mounting the camera, base and housing to the aircraftservice vehicle.
 44. The system of claim 43, wherein conflictingcommands are arbitrated based upon a first come first serve basis.